Venezuelan Opposition Creates New “Broad Front” to Battle Maduro

The new opposition coalition in Venezuela will face Maduro's expected fraudulent reelection of in May.

The opposition is turning its efforts towards a new “Broad Front” coalition in Venezuela against Maduro (Twitter).

In an attempt to organize against the certain fraudulent reelection of Nicolás Maduro, the Venezuelan opposition has announced the creation of the “Broad Front for Venezuela”; a coalition composed of political parties, NGOs, unions, and civil society.

The “Broad Front” intends to draw more international attention to the nation’s crisis and increase pressure against the dictatorship in Venezuela. The new group considers it important to carry out “smart” and strategic demonstrations.

On Thursday, March 8, the Democratic Unity Table (MUD) presented the new platform that counts with the participation of various sectors and includes representatives of the Catholic Church.

The idea is to work together to “restore constitutional order and democracy in Venezuela.”

According to the testimony of various speakers during the event, the “Broad Front” will take concrete actions to advocate for “transparent elections.”

José Virtuoso, rector of the Andrés Bello Catholic University, stated that the new platform will be the starting point of a great alliance and the beginning of a successful national movement.

“This front will be the starting point of a great national movement, but we have much work to do, and our cause depends on our reception by the public, and our call to action in each and every one of Venezuela’s states, that we are up for the challenge,” he said.

The organization’s manifesto states that “they will overcome the passivity and the mistakes of the past.”

Among the first steps taken by the Frente Amplio was to announce a massive demonstration for March 12 and 17, to protest against the governmental electoral fraud that will take place on May 20.

The first demonstration will be in front of the U.N. headquarters to demand “real elections,” and discourage the international organization from sending an official observer to sign off on the electoral fraud implemented by Maduro.

The PanAm Post interviewed María Teresa Romero, Venezuelan journalist and political scientist, who emphasized the importance of mobilization on the part of all of Venezuela’s sectors.

“It’s a good time to mobilize, people should express their discontent with these elections; but beyond that, a national plan of action is needed. This front not only has to focus on specific day-to-day events, it must be mobilized in all corners of the country,” she suggested.

Romero said, additionally, that there must be a coordinated strategy to seek more international support and strong measures against the dictatorship of Nicolás Maduro. “We must achieve the international isolation of Venezuela, but something coordinated so that the population is not as negatively affected,” she said.

“There are mechanisms on the part of the international community that can help to avoid greater pain; one example would be a kind of Betancourt doctrine that implies the breaking of diplomatic relations, which would choke the government and force it to negotiate its exit,” she added.

She is skeptical of further demonstrations that end in deaths and that “lead to nothing.”

“Internally, society must organize itself, perhaps propose clandestine and well-thought-out actions to put even more pressure on the regime.”

Additionally, Romero suggested that the Venezuelan people “plan a massive act” for the day of the presidential elections, as a sign of rejection of Chavismo’s electoral fraud.

On the other hand, Jorge Tricás, political scientist and professor of political sociology, argued that large scale protests will be necessary.

“We have to mobilize people for the street: there must be protests, conferences, demonstrations, rallies, manifestos, statements; a fight that is staged in the public space.”

The analyst said that abstention in the elections should be accompanied by action in the streets, as it ensures that “staying at home is not a solution.”

He concluded that it will be necessary for both Venezuela and the world to create a “lever” that allows for decisive action, since his analysis suggest that there will be no exit of the dictatorship without foreign intervention.